 |
| Palestinians take part in a protest demanding the lifting of Palestinian Authority sanctions on the Gaza Strip, in the West Bank city of Ramallah, on 10 June. The PA used riot police and party thugs to violently suppress a similar protest on 13 June. Eyad Jadallah APA images |
As the articles below from Electronic Intifada and Middle East Eye show, the behaviour of the Palestinian Authority is shameful. The PA, which is nothing less than subcontractors for the Israeli state, violently attacked a demonstration in Ramallah in support of their brothers and sisters in Gaza. And they did this on behalf of Israel (& the United States & Europe).
The demands of the demonstrators were simple – that the PA stop acting as a collaborator in enforcing Israel’s siege of Gaza e.g. by requesting that Israel cut the amount of electricity Gaza receives to 3-4 hours a day or by itself cutting the salaries of 50,000 civil servants in Gaza.
It is clear that the actions of Fateh thugs who, in co-ordination with the Palestinian Security Police, attacked the demonstration mean that Fateh should no longer be seen as a resistance movement and should be treated in the same way as the Village Leagues used to be treated. Collaborators.
What is also shameful is that Palestinian Solidarity Campaign and the solidarity movement in this country has nothing to say about this. The Anti-Apartheid Movement never hesitated to condemn Inkatha under Mangosuthu Buthelezi in South Africa. Inkatha Freedom Party was used and helped by the Apartheid regime to attack the anti-apartheid struggle and the ANC. It was responsible for much of the appalling violence in the lead up to South Africa’s independence.
I’d be interested to hear what the difference is between the PA and Inkatha. I have moved motions in the past at PSC AGM calling the PA a quisling regime, the equivalent of the Vichy regime in France under the Nazis and calling for PSC to dissociate itself from the PA. Always the response is that this is ‘internal’ to the Palestinian movement. This is a shameful and cowardly response. If we condemn Israel we cannot avert our eyes from those Palestinians who enforce Israel’s occupation.
It should be a matter of shame that someone can say that ‘It is a bizarre feeling when everyone around you is more scared of Palestinian forces than they are of the Israeli army.’
No doubt the PA feel the need to prove to Israel and Trump that they are ‘reliable’. That whatever rhetoric they indulge in they can be relied on to uphold the occupation’s norms. In Abbas’s own words, security co-operation with Israel is ‘sacred‘. As an article in the Jerusalem Post last year WILL ABBAS SEVER HIS ‘SACRED’ SECURITY COOPERATION WITH ISRAEL? made clear ‘suspending security cooperation is one of the Palestinians’ strongest cards. If Abbas does follow through on his threat to end it, Israel’s security will be greatly affected, as Palestinian security forces have stopped many attacks in the West Bank since a wave of terrorism broke out in October 2015.’
The suggestion that the PA is ‘internal’ to the Palestinian movement is a lie. It is a threat to the Palestinian resistance movement and it has never hesitated to act to control and prevent any movement growing which challenges the Israeli state. It is part of the political incoherence and worse of PSC and its current leadership that they have nothing to say about the role of the PA.
Tony Greenstein
 |
| Abbas – is the Palestinian equivalent of the Mangosuthu Buthelezi – the Black African collaborator with Apartheid |
Palestinians deserve better than PA brutality
The Electronic Intifada
15 June 2018
Human rights workers seldom agree with Donald Trump and his entourage.
Yet this week I found myself echoing a view expressed by Jason
Greenblatt, a Middle East envoy for the US president. For very different
reasons to the ones he cited, I arrived at the same conclusion as Greenblatt: the Palestinian people deserve better than the Palestinian Authority.
This was evident as I observed the PA’s handling of a protest on Wednesday evening.
The protest was organized by ordinary Palestinians who object to how
the PA has imposed sanctions on Gaza. It was banned by the PA on the
spurious pretext of avoiding disruptions to the Eid al-Fitr holiday
celebrations.
Yet the protest went ahead – without official approval – in Ramallah,
a city in the occupied West Bank. Its organizers refused to be bullied
into canceling a display of solidarity with their fellow Palestinians in
Gaza.
During the early stages of the protest, riot police working for the
PA attacked its participants. They beat protesters, taking a number of
them into custody. I saw one riot police officer – his face covered by a
balaclava – rolling a stun grenade towards the crowd.
After about an hour, groups of thugs and secret police dispersed among the crowd took over the task of suppressing the protest.
The thugs in question wore hats, identifying themselves as supporters
of Fatah, the party dominating the PA. Some of these hats depicted a kuffiyeh, the Palestinian checkered scarf. The irony involved here was sordid: the kuffiyeh is supposed to be a symbol of liberation.
15 June 2018
Human rights workers seldom agree with Donald Trump and his entourage.
Greenblatt, a Middle East envoy for the US president. For very different
reasons to the ones he cited, I arrived at the same conclusion as Greenblatt: the Palestinian people deserve better than the Palestinian Authority.
the PA has imposed sanctions on Gaza. It was banned by the PA on the
spurious pretext of avoiding disruptions to the Eid al-Fitr holiday
celebrations.
a city in the occupied West Bank. Its organizers refused to be bullied
into canceling a display of solidarity with their fellow Palestinians in
Gaza.
PA attacked its participants. They beat protesters, taking a number of
them into custody. I saw one riot police officer – his face covered by a
balaclava – rolling a stun grenade towards the crowd.
of Fatah, the party dominating the PA. Some of these hats depicted a kuffiyeh, the Palestinian checkered scarf. The irony involved here was sordid: the kuffiyeh is supposed to be a symbol of liberation.
Secret police
The secret police in the crowd were easy to spot, if you looked for
them. They were men with large muscles, who watched over everyone else.
They could be found in groups of four.
The secret police could be seen pointing out individuals to the thugs
with the Fatah hats. If individuals who had been pointed out resisted
arrest by these thugs, they were dragged away and beaten. None of the
thugs looked older than 25.
The thugs grabbed many protesters and placed them in headlocks. Other
protesters were punched and slapped in the head. One man had his shirt
completely ripped off him by the thugs before they handed him over to
the riot police.
Numerous protesters were rounded up and placed in vans, which were
waiting near al-Manara Square in the city center. In one case, a
protester was placed in an ambulance.
I later learned that protesters who had been rounded up were driven
to police stations and to the headquarters of the PA’s “preventive
security” division.
While I was standing next to some protesters on Wednesday, I suddenly
felt my arms being restrained. One of the secret police had forced my
hands behind my back. He did not use extreme force to do so. But he was
certainly asserting his control.
The man told me to come with him. He pushed me down a lane. “Don’t be scared,” he whispered. “We respect people.”
I would have laughed – if I was not worried about having my head bashed in, which the man could have done on a whim.
The secret police officer brought me near the vans full of protesters
who had been arrested. He handed me over to another man, who was
carrying a walkie-talkie. That man asked me – in fluent English – what I
was doing at the protest. Where was I from? Was I a journalist?
I replied in Arabic that I was not a journalist.
The man took my phone and went through the photos and messages saved
on it. When he handed the phone back to me, he asked me for my ID card. I
told him I did not have it with me.
The man then instructed the secret police officer who had grabbed me
to take me away. I was ordered to go home. As I did so, I was followed
through the streets by three other secret police officers.
Police working for the Palestinian Authority are funded and trained
by the European Union and the United States. A key purpose of this
training is to ensure that the PA works in the interests of Israel.
The way they handled this week’s protests illustrated how the PA’s
police can be similarly brutal to Israel’s forces of occupation.
Palestinians surely deserve better than that.
The author is a human rights worker in Palestine. They requested
anonymity as they had been instructed by their organization to remain
silent on how the PA handled Wednesday’s protests.
them. They were men with large muscles, who watched over everyone else.
They could be found in groups of four.
with the Fatah hats. If individuals who had been pointed out resisted
arrest by these thugs, they were dragged away and beaten. None of the
thugs looked older than 25.
protesters were punched and slapped in the head. One man had his shirt
completely ripped off him by the thugs before they handed him over to
the riot police.
waiting near al-Manara Square in the city center. In one case, a
protester was placed in an ambulance.
to police stations and to the headquarters of the PA’s “preventive
security” division.
felt my arms being restrained. One of the secret police had forced my
hands behind my back. He did not use extreme force to do so. But he was
certainly asserting his control.
who had been arrested. He handed me over to another man, who was
carrying a walkie-talkie. That man asked me – in fluent English – what I
was doing at the protest. Where was I from? Was I a journalist?
on it. When he handed the phone back to me, he asked me for my ID card. I
told him I did not have it with me.
to take me away. I was ordered to go home. As I did so, I was followed
through the streets by three other secret police officers.
by the European Union and the United States. A key purpose of this
training is to ensure that the PA works in the interests of Israel.
police can be similarly brutal to Israel’s forces of occupation.
Palestinians surely deserve better than that.
anonymity as they had been instructed by their organization to remain
silent on how the PA handled Wednesday’s protests.
Protests in Ramallah: Does the PA actually care about Palestinians?
It is a bizarre feeling when everyone around you is more scared of Palestinian forces than they are of the Israeli army
Photo: Palestinian security forces stand guard in Ramallah on 13 June 2018, during a protest calling on President Mahmoud Abbas to end financial sanctions against Palestinians in Gaza (Reuters)
Saturday 16 June 2018 10:30 UTC
As I stepped out onto Rukab Street, one of the main streets in Ramallah, at once I heard the cries: “There’s gas!”
Wednesday night’s protest, organised by the Campaign to Lift PA Sanctions on Gaza,
had only just begun, but security forces were already firing stun
grenades and tear gas cannisters directly at crowds that only 20 seconds
earlier had raised banners demanding that sanctions against Gaza be
lifted and chanted: “In spirit, in blood, we redeem you Gaza.”
Everyone
seemed still for a while: many were scattered in different areas around
central Ramallah. Tension lay heavy in the air as people stood frozen
on footpaths and in the streets, staring at the number of government
personnel present.
It seemed as if the Palestinian Authority had
sent out every member of its security forces for this event, including
the National Security Service, the Palestinian police (including riot
police), the General Intelligence Service and the Preventive Security
Service.
There was also a downright terrifying gang of Fatah party
members, loyal to PA President Mahmoud Abbas. Some carried pepper
spray. Each wore a white cap. All of them were prowling around the
gathered protesters.
On Tuesday, the night before the
demonstration, the PA called for a counter-protest. This, everyone knew,
would be a recipe for disaster.
“I
don’t even know if there’s going to be protest,” a friend said to me.
People’s concerns were repressed before they could even be expressed.
The
protesters’ simple message was directed at the PA, which more than a
month ago halved the salaries of approximately 50,000 government
employees in Gaza, leaving workers unable to provide for their families.
Palestinian security personnel confront a protest in Ramallah on 13 June 2018 (Tessa Fox/MEE)
The cut came after the PA also stopped paying for Gaza’s electricity
last year, further limiting residents’ access to power and crippling
industry and essential public services including hospitals, schools.
The
Palestinian National Council, the PA’s legislative body, as well as
factions within the PA have all called for the sanctions to be lifted.
That’s left Abbas to shoulder much of the blame, as his critics accuse
him of trying to unseat Hamas from Gaza, where it rules the territory,
while using Gaza’s two million residents as political pawns.
It’s
left Gaza caught in a dire humanitarian crisis, between the Israeli
blockade of the strip on one side and on the other the punitive approach
of the PA, whose actions have been so extreme that residents within
Ramallah itself, the PA’s seat of government, have risen up against the
authorities and called for sanctions to be lifted.
It is a bizarre feeling when everyone around you is more scared of Palestinian forces than they are of the Israeli army
 |
| Photo: Palestinian security forces stand guard in Ramallah on 13 June 2018, during a protest calling on President Mahmoud Abbas to end financial sanctions against Palestinians in Gaza (Reuters) |
Saturday 16 June 2018 10:30 UTC
As I stepped out onto Rukab Street, one of the main streets in Ramallah, at once I heard the cries: “There’s gas!”
Wednesday night’s protest, organised by the Campaign to Lift PA Sanctions on Gaza,
had only just begun, but security forces were already firing stun
grenades and tear gas cannisters directly at crowds that only 20 seconds
earlier had raised banners demanding that sanctions against Gaza be
lifted and chanted: “In spirit, in blood, we redeem you Gaza.”
had only just begun, but security forces were already firing stun
grenades and tear gas cannisters directly at crowds that only 20 seconds
earlier had raised banners demanding that sanctions against Gaza be
lifted and chanted: “In spirit, in blood, we redeem you Gaza.”
Everyone
seemed still for a while: many were scattered in different areas around
central Ramallah. Tension lay heavy in the air as people stood frozen
on footpaths and in the streets, staring at the number of government
personnel present.
seemed still for a while: many were scattered in different areas around
central Ramallah. Tension lay heavy in the air as people stood frozen
on footpaths and in the streets, staring at the number of government
personnel present.
It seemed as if the Palestinian Authority had
sent out every member of its security forces for this event, including
the National Security Service, the Palestinian police (including riot
police), the General Intelligence Service and the Preventive Security
Service.
sent out every member of its security forces for this event, including
the National Security Service, the Palestinian police (including riot
police), the General Intelligence Service and the Preventive Security
Service.
There was also a downright terrifying gang of Fatah party
members, loyal to PA President Mahmoud Abbas. Some carried pepper
spray. Each wore a white cap. All of them were prowling around the
gathered protesters.
members, loyal to PA President Mahmoud Abbas. Some carried pepper
spray. Each wore a white cap. All of them were prowling around the
gathered protesters.
On Tuesday, the night before the
demonstration, the PA called for a counter-protest. This, everyone knew,
would be a recipe for disaster.
demonstration, the PA called for a counter-protest. This, everyone knew,
would be a recipe for disaster.
“I
don’t even know if there’s going to be protest,” a friend said to me.
People’s concerns were repressed before they could even be expressed.
don’t even know if there’s going to be protest,” a friend said to me.
People’s concerns were repressed before they could even be expressed.
The
protesters’ simple message was directed at the PA, which more than a
month ago halved the salaries of approximately 50,000 government
employees in Gaza, leaving workers unable to provide for their families.
protesters’ simple message was directed at the PA, which more than a
month ago halved the salaries of approximately 50,000 government
employees in Gaza, leaving workers unable to provide for their families.
Palestinian security personnel confront a protest in Ramallah on 13 June 2018 (Tessa Fox/MEE)
The cut came after the PA also stopped paying for Gaza’s electricity
last year, further limiting residents’ access to power and crippling
industry and essential public services including hospitals, schools.
last year, further limiting residents’ access to power and crippling
industry and essential public services including hospitals, schools.
The
Palestinian National Council, the PA’s legislative body, as well as
factions within the PA have all called for the sanctions to be lifted.
That’s left Abbas to shoulder much of the blame, as his critics accuse
him of trying to unseat Hamas from Gaza, where it rules the territory,
while using Gaza’s two million residents as political pawns.
Palestinian National Council, the PA’s legislative body, as well as
factions within the PA have all called for the sanctions to be lifted.
That’s left Abbas to shoulder much of the blame, as his critics accuse
him of trying to unseat Hamas from Gaza, where it rules the territory,
while using Gaza’s two million residents as political pawns.
It’s
left Gaza caught in a dire humanitarian crisis, between the Israeli
blockade of the strip on one side and on the other the punitive approach
of the PA, whose actions have been so extreme that residents within
Ramallah itself, the PA’s seat of government, have risen up against the
authorities and called for sanctions to be lifted.
left Gaza caught in a dire humanitarian crisis, between the Israeli
blockade of the strip on one side and on the other the punitive approach
of the PA, whose actions have been so extreme that residents within
Ramallah itself, the PA’s seat of government, have risen up against the
authorities and called for sanctions to be lifted.
PA uses same tactics as Israel
Photos
and captions circulating on social media suggested that thousands of
people were there, although it was hard to differentiate between
protesters, bystanders and undercover police.
I tried to push as
close as I could to what was going on to take some pictures, even though
I had been warned only half-an-hour earlier that taking photos and
videos was banned.
I was also warned that the police were trying
to break cameras and confiscate memory cards. To me, this is one of the
first signs that a government can give to show that it is actually an
oppressive regime. That night the PA did everything in its power to
restrict the free flow of information.
Palestinians in Ramallah demand the lifting of sanctions against Gaza on 13 June 2018 (Reuters)
The
whole scene was one of chaos. In one area, security forces threw rounds
of sound bombs. Riot cops started running down yet another street to
try to block any entrance to al-Manara, the main square in Ramallah. And
dotted among the crowd were those white-capped members of Fatah, some
of whom were undercover officers, taking matters into their own hands
and beating up protesters, all under the watchful eye of the police.
A
friend who works at a local Palestinian TV station told me that around
2,000 undercover forces were within the area. Someone else told me that
one female protester had a gun pointed at her head by one of the
undercover officers. She couldn’t talk afterwards, she was in such a
state of shock.
It felt as if those undercover police were mirroring the same tactics as used by the Israeli mustarabeen, the undercover unit trained to look and act like Arabs.
By
deploying so many police in civilian clothes, the authorities sought
not only to maximise the number of arrests but also to dismantle any
network of trust among civilians and destroy the solidarity that is a
necessary tool against any oppressive regime.
It’s always been the goal of the Israeli
occupation to break the unity of historical Palestine, including
movement to and from Gaza, using the building of illegal settlements,
restrictions on access to pre-1948 areas of the West Bank and the
Greater Jerusalem Bill.
Now it is out in the open that the PA, as
led by Fatah, is prepared to crush the Palestinian cause and unity to
retain power over the Palestinian population.
Undercover forces
made the majority of arrests, which numbered more than 60 by the end of
the night. I saw people, including women and young girls, kicked,
punched and beaten with batons. People’s bodies were pulled in all
directions as they were dragged away by at least five men to a
fenced-off car park, where riot police stood guard, waiting for vans to
pick up their latest prisoners.
Photos
and captions circulating on social media suggested that thousands of
people were there, although it was hard to differentiate between
protesters, bystanders and undercover police.
and captions circulating on social media suggested that thousands of
people were there, although it was hard to differentiate between
protesters, bystanders and undercover police.
I tried to push as
close as I could to what was going on to take some pictures, even though
I had been warned only half-an-hour earlier that taking photos and
videos was banned.
close as I could to what was going on to take some pictures, even though
I had been warned only half-an-hour earlier that taking photos and
videos was banned.
I was also warned that the police were trying
to break cameras and confiscate memory cards. To me, this is one of the
first signs that a government can give to show that it is actually an
oppressive regime. That night the PA did everything in its power to
restrict the free flow of information.
to break cameras and confiscate memory cards. To me, this is one of the
first signs that a government can give to show that it is actually an
oppressive regime. That night the PA did everything in its power to
restrict the free flow of information.
Palestinians in Ramallah demand the lifting of sanctions against Gaza on 13 June 2018 (Reuters)
The
whole scene was one of chaos. In one area, security forces threw rounds
of sound bombs. Riot cops started running down yet another street to
try to block any entrance to al-Manara, the main square in Ramallah. And
dotted among the crowd were those white-capped members of Fatah, some
of whom were undercover officers, taking matters into their own hands
and beating up protesters, all under the watchful eye of the police.
whole scene was one of chaos. In one area, security forces threw rounds
of sound bombs. Riot cops started running down yet another street to
try to block any entrance to al-Manara, the main square in Ramallah. And
dotted among the crowd were those white-capped members of Fatah, some
of whom were undercover officers, taking matters into their own hands
and beating up protesters, all under the watchful eye of the police.
A
friend who works at a local Palestinian TV station told me that around
2,000 undercover forces were within the area. Someone else told me that
one female protester had a gun pointed at her head by one of the
undercover officers. She couldn’t talk afterwards, she was in such a
state of shock.
friend who works at a local Palestinian TV station told me that around
2,000 undercover forces were within the area. Someone else told me that
one female protester had a gun pointed at her head by one of the
undercover officers. She couldn’t talk afterwards, she was in such a
state of shock.
It felt as if those undercover police were mirroring the same tactics as used by the Israeli mustarabeen, the undercover unit trained to look and act like Arabs.
By
deploying so many police in civilian clothes, the authorities sought
not only to maximise the number of arrests but also to dismantle any
network of trust among civilians and destroy the solidarity that is a
necessary tool against any oppressive regime.
deploying so many police in civilian clothes, the authorities sought
not only to maximise the number of arrests but also to dismantle any
network of trust among civilians and destroy the solidarity that is a
necessary tool against any oppressive regime.
It’s always been the goal of the Israeli
occupation to break the unity of historical Palestine, including
movement to and from Gaza, using the building of illegal settlements,
restrictions on access to pre-1948 areas of the West Bank and the
Greater Jerusalem Bill.
occupation to break the unity of historical Palestine, including
movement to and from Gaza, using the building of illegal settlements,
restrictions on access to pre-1948 areas of the West Bank and the
Greater Jerusalem Bill.
Now it is out in the open that the PA, as
led by Fatah, is prepared to crush the Palestinian cause and unity to
retain power over the Palestinian population.
led by Fatah, is prepared to crush the Palestinian cause and unity to
retain power over the Palestinian population.
Undercover forces
made the majority of arrests, which numbered more than 60 by the end of
the night. I saw people, including women and young girls, kicked,
punched and beaten with batons. People’s bodies were pulled in all
directions as they were dragged away by at least five men to a
fenced-off car park, where riot police stood guard, waiting for vans to
pick up their latest prisoners.
made the majority of arrests, which numbered more than 60 by the end of
the night. I saw people, including women and young girls, kicked,
punched and beaten with batons. People’s bodies were pulled in all
directions as they were dragged away by at least five men to a
fenced-off car park, where riot police stood guard, waiting for vans to
pick up their latest prisoners.
Need to witness brutality
I
knew I had to try and document the brutality. But less than 10 minutes
after arriving at the protest I had already been sternly warned by an
undercover policeman not to take photos.
Eventually I managed to
climb up the roundabout at al-Manara. Standing on top of one of the lion
statues, I had a clear vantage point of just how many people were in
the streets and the brawls that were unfolding below.
Soon, I
heard someone yell at me, then realised that multiple people were
pointing and starting to run in my direction. I ran down the back of the
statue while taking my memory card out of my camera and shoving it in
my pants.
By the time I jumped down, civilian and uniformed police
had already climbed inside the fence. I was trapped. They grabbed me by
my arms while another tried to take my camera. I thought for sure they
were going to break it. I just kept screaming and yelling at them,
telling them to let me go and to wait so I could “prove” to them I had
no photos.
They
then put three women police officers onto me. One held my arm and kept
telling me to be quiet and calm down. I yelled back: “How on earth can I
be calm down when you’re trying to arrest me and break my camera?”
The
sound of the commotion began to work in my favour, as an older
Palestinian woman came over and started apologising for what was
happening. A man dressed in civilian clothes stepped forward and
declared that he was a policeman. I replied that he should be wearing
uniform.
I wanted to yell at them that they weren’t true
Palestinians; that all they were was part of a single faction, Fatah,
and were simply government employees; that they didn’t care about the
Palestinians in Gaza; that they didn’t care about the Palestinians in
Ramallah, who they were beating up; that they didn’t care about the
Palestinians who had travelled all the way from Haifa by bus to protest
alongside their brothers and sisters; and that the the people living
under dictatorships across the Palestinian territories counted for
nothing in their eyes.
I
knew I had to try and document the brutality. But less than 10 minutes
after arriving at the protest I had already been sternly warned by an
undercover policeman not to take photos.
knew I had to try and document the brutality. But less than 10 minutes
after arriving at the protest I had already been sternly warned by an
undercover policeman not to take photos.
Eventually I managed to
climb up the roundabout at al-Manara. Standing on top of one of the lion
statues, I had a clear vantage point of just how many people were in
the streets and the brawls that were unfolding below.
climb up the roundabout at al-Manara. Standing on top of one of the lion
statues, I had a clear vantage point of just how many people were in
the streets and the brawls that were unfolding below.
Soon, I
heard someone yell at me, then realised that multiple people were
pointing and starting to run in my direction. I ran down the back of the
statue while taking my memory card out of my camera and shoving it in
my pants.
heard someone yell at me, then realised that multiple people were
pointing and starting to run in my direction. I ran down the back of the
statue while taking my memory card out of my camera and shoving it in
my pants.
By the time I jumped down, civilian and uniformed police
had already climbed inside the fence. I was trapped. They grabbed me by
my arms while another tried to take my camera. I thought for sure they
were going to break it. I just kept screaming and yelling at them,
telling them to let me go and to wait so I could “prove” to them I had
no photos.
had already climbed inside the fence. I was trapped. They grabbed me by
my arms while another tried to take my camera. I thought for sure they
were going to break it. I just kept screaming and yelling at them,
telling them to let me go and to wait so I could “prove” to them I had
no photos.
They
then put three women police officers onto me. One held my arm and kept
telling me to be quiet and calm down. I yelled back: “How on earth can I
be calm down when you’re trying to arrest me and break my camera?”
then put three women police officers onto me. One held my arm and kept
telling me to be quiet and calm down. I yelled back: “How on earth can I
be calm down when you’re trying to arrest me and break my camera?”
The
sound of the commotion began to work in my favour, as an older
Palestinian woman came over and started apologising for what was
happening. A man dressed in civilian clothes stepped forward and
declared that he was a policeman. I replied that he should be wearing
uniform.
sound of the commotion began to work in my favour, as an older
Palestinian woman came over and started apologising for what was
happening. A man dressed in civilian clothes stepped forward and
declared that he was a policeman. I replied that he should be wearing
uniform.
I wanted to yell at them that they weren’t true
Palestinians; that all they were was part of a single faction, Fatah,
and were simply government employees; that they didn’t care about the
Palestinians in Gaza; that they didn’t care about the Palestinians in
Ramallah, who they were beating up; that they didn’t care about the
Palestinians who had travelled all the way from Haifa by bus to protest
alongside their brothers and sisters; and that the the people living
under dictatorships across the Palestinian territories counted for
nothing in their eyes.
Palestinians; that all they were was part of a single faction, Fatah,
and were simply government employees; that they didn’t care about the
Palestinians in Gaza; that they didn’t care about the Palestinians in
Ramallah, who they were beating up; that they didn’t care about the
Palestinians who had travelled all the way from Haifa by bus to protest
alongside their brothers and sisters; and that the the people living
under dictatorships across the Palestinian territories counted for
nothing in their eyes.
Why is Palestinian Authority doing this?
Finally
I was released and found my friend. She was beside herself because the
undercover forces had taken her cameraman’s memory card while she was
doing a live broadcast criticising the PA. She thought for sure that she
would be arrested the next day. She was terrified.
The problem was, the
Palestinian security forces were driven by complete emotion. Couple this
with them not being experienced enough to deal with such large crowds
and it meant that their use of weapons was a disaster.
At one stage, a security officer,
holding a sound bomb in his hand, wrestled with a protester. During the
scuffle, the bomb went off. It seemed like all the actions of the
security forces were driven by impulse rather than orders from their
superiors.
Stories have also emerged of sexual harassment,
perpetrated by the men wearing those Fatah caps. One woman was chased
down a side street and sexually abused before she was rescued by people
she knew.
Many of the Fatah supporters are themselves from
families of martyrs or political prisoners. Other Palestinians cannot
fathom how they could act this way during a protest in support of their
brothers and sisters in Gaza. Are they attempting to create conflict
among the factions?
Protesters and residents are still in a
complete state of shock, as well as physical and mental exhaustion. The
night after the protest, those who had attended were still too scared to
walk the streets or go into public spaces for fear of being arrested or
beaten up.
People unconnected to the protests were targeted just
for being in the street. I witnessed multiple families and women with
babies, who were trying to walk home, standing bewildered as they were
yelled at by the presidential guard.
Finally
I was released and found my friend. She was beside herself because the
undercover forces had taken her cameraman’s memory card while she was
doing a live broadcast criticising the PA. She thought for sure that she
would be arrested the next day. She was terrified.
I was released and found my friend. She was beside herself because the
undercover forces had taken her cameraman’s memory card while she was
doing a live broadcast criticising the PA. She thought for sure that she
would be arrested the next day. She was terrified.
The problem was, the
Palestinian security forces were driven by complete emotion. Couple this
with them not being experienced enough to deal with such large crowds
and it meant that their use of weapons was a disaster.
Palestinian security forces were driven by complete emotion. Couple this
with them not being experienced enough to deal with such large crowds
and it meant that their use of weapons was a disaster.
At one stage, a security officer,
holding a sound bomb in his hand, wrestled with a protester. During the
scuffle, the bomb went off. It seemed like all the actions of the
security forces were driven by impulse rather than orders from their
superiors.
holding a sound bomb in his hand, wrestled with a protester. During the
scuffle, the bomb went off. It seemed like all the actions of the
security forces were driven by impulse rather than orders from their
superiors.
Stories have also emerged of sexual harassment,
perpetrated by the men wearing those Fatah caps. One woman was chased
down a side street and sexually abused before she was rescued by people
she knew.
perpetrated by the men wearing those Fatah caps. One woman was chased
down a side street and sexually abused before she was rescued by people
she knew.
Many of the Fatah supporters are themselves from
families of martyrs or political prisoners. Other Palestinians cannot
fathom how they could act this way during a protest in support of their
brothers and sisters in Gaza. Are they attempting to create conflict
among the factions?
families of martyrs or political prisoners. Other Palestinians cannot
fathom how they could act this way during a protest in support of their
brothers and sisters in Gaza. Are they attempting to create conflict
among the factions?
Protesters and residents are still in a
complete state of shock, as well as physical and mental exhaustion. The
night after the protest, those who had attended were still too scared to
walk the streets or go into public spaces for fear of being arrested or
beaten up.
complete state of shock, as well as physical and mental exhaustion. The
night after the protest, those who had attended were still too scared to
walk the streets or go into public spaces for fear of being arrested or
beaten up.
People unconnected to the protests were targeted just
for being in the street. I witnessed multiple families and women with
babies, who were trying to walk home, standing bewildered as they were
yelled at by the presidential guard.
for being in the street. I witnessed multiple families and women with
babies, who were trying to walk home, standing bewildered as they were
yelled at by the presidential guard.
Why the protests will continue
Another protest is already set for Wednesday.
What sort of excuse will the PA use then to repress people’s freedom of
expression and assembly when it is held outside of the Eid holiday?
Will they find new grounds to ban and criminalise protests?
Fatah
and Abbas showed their true colours to the people of Palestine this week
as well as alienating some of the supporters from their own party. The
protest held last Wednesday night wasn’t organised to bring down the PA
or to depose Abbas.
It was in
support of another persecuted population of Palestinians, who may live
under separate Hamas rule in Gaza but whose fate has now been crushed
still further by the regime controlling the West Bank.
But if the
removal of sanctions against Gaza is not achieved in good time, then do
not be surprised if those living in the West Bank focus their energies
on removing heads of government. On Friday, 70 civil society
organisations and trade unions within Palestine called for the dismissal
of Rami al-Hamdallah, the Palestinian prime minister and interior
minister.
The activists are now recovering, tending their wounds,
being released from prison and embracing their close support networks to
nurture their emotionally drained minds.
Hopefully the
organisation and unity of Palestinians will now only be strengthened
even more, as their fight for their brothers and sisters in Gaza is
emboldened by the brutality that the protesters in Ramallah faced.
– Tessa Fox
is a freelance journalist, photographer and filmmaker focusing on war
& conflict, indigenous affairs and the environment. She has had work
published for Al Jazeera, Deutsche Welle, Al-Monitor, The Independent
(UK), Holistic News (Poland), Mail & Guardian (South Africa), Knack
(Belgium), Australian Broadcasting Corporation, SBS World News, New
Matilda, VICE and Crikey among others. Fox was also a finalist for the
Dart Centre for Journalism and Trauma Asia Pacific Prize and, as a
correspondent, has reported from Turkey, Myanmar, Ethiopia, Russia,
Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands, Australia and the EU among others.
The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Eye.
Another protest is already set for Wednesday.
What sort of excuse will the PA use then to repress people’s freedom of
expression and assembly when it is held outside of the Eid holiday?
Will they find new grounds to ban and criminalise protests?
What sort of excuse will the PA use then to repress people’s freedom of
expression and assembly when it is held outside of the Eid holiday?
Will they find new grounds to ban and criminalise protests?
Fatah
and Abbas showed their true colours to the people of Palestine this week
as well as alienating some of the supporters from their own party. The
protest held last Wednesday night wasn’t organised to bring down the PA
or to depose Abbas.
and Abbas showed their true colours to the people of Palestine this week
as well as alienating some of the supporters from their own party. The
protest held last Wednesday night wasn’t organised to bring down the PA
or to depose Abbas.
It was in
support of another persecuted population of Palestinians, who may live
under separate Hamas rule in Gaza but whose fate has now been crushed
still further by the regime controlling the West Bank.
support of another persecuted population of Palestinians, who may live
under separate Hamas rule in Gaza but whose fate has now been crushed
still further by the regime controlling the West Bank.
But if the
removal of sanctions against Gaza is not achieved in good time, then do
not be surprised if those living in the West Bank focus their energies
on removing heads of government. On Friday, 70 civil society
organisations and trade unions within Palestine called for the dismissal
of Rami al-Hamdallah, the Palestinian prime minister and interior
minister.
removal of sanctions against Gaza is not achieved in good time, then do
not be surprised if those living in the West Bank focus their energies
on removing heads of government. On Friday, 70 civil society
organisations and trade unions within Palestine called for the dismissal
of Rami al-Hamdallah, the Palestinian prime minister and interior
minister.
The activists are now recovering, tending their wounds,
being released from prison and embracing their close support networks to
nurture their emotionally drained minds.
being released from prison and embracing their close support networks to
nurture their emotionally drained minds.
Hopefully the
organisation and unity of Palestinians will now only be strengthened
even more, as their fight for their brothers and sisters in Gaza is
emboldened by the brutality that the protesters in Ramallah faced.
organisation and unity of Palestinians will now only be strengthened
even more, as their fight for their brothers and sisters in Gaza is
emboldened by the brutality that the protesters in Ramallah faced.
– Tessa Fox
is a freelance journalist, photographer and filmmaker focusing on war
& conflict, indigenous affairs and the environment. She has had work
published for Al Jazeera, Deutsche Welle, Al-Monitor, The Independent
(UK), Holistic News (Poland), Mail & Guardian (South Africa), Knack
(Belgium), Australian Broadcasting Corporation, SBS World News, New
Matilda, VICE and Crikey among others. Fox was also a finalist for the
Dart Centre for Journalism and Trauma Asia Pacific Prize and, as a
correspondent, has reported from Turkey, Myanmar, Ethiopia, Russia,
Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands, Australia and the EU among others.
is a freelance journalist, photographer and filmmaker focusing on war
& conflict, indigenous affairs and the environment. She has had work
published for Al Jazeera, Deutsche Welle, Al-Monitor, The Independent
(UK), Holistic News (Poland), Mail & Guardian (South Africa), Knack
(Belgium), Australian Broadcasting Corporation, SBS World News, New
Matilda, VICE and Crikey among others. Fox was also a finalist for the
Dart Centre for Journalism and Trauma Asia Pacific Prize and, as a
correspondent, has reported from Turkey, Myanmar, Ethiopia, Russia,
Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands, Australia and the EU among others.
The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Eye.
Posted in Blog
